Sports editor says goodbye to East County after eight years

A football game between Braden River High and Venice High convinced me I was in the right place. 

It was Oct. 14, 2016. Three weeks earlier, I had started on the Observer sports beat. It was my first real job after graduating from the University of Missouri. In those three weeks, I had some questions about where I had elected to live. It was far from my family's home base in Maryland; was I OK with that? Everyone at the paper seems kind and talented; will that last? And most importantly: Do people seriously walk around in this humidity all the time? 

The answer to all three turned out to be yes. It was Braden River's football game that gave me the first dose of comfort. The Pirates would lose the game 42-35, snapping the program's regular-season winning streak at 25 games. But man, was it thrilling. That Pirates team was loaded: running back Deshaun Fenwick and defensive end Taylor Upshaw would go on to excel in the college ranks at Oregon State University and the University of Michigan/University of Arizona, respectively, and both got a look in NFL training camps this fall, though neither is currently on a roster. Quarterback Louis Colosimo played at Davidson College and has spent his post-graduation days playing professionally in Europe. There were other great players, too, like defensive lineman Deqwunn McCobb, who used his massive 6-foot-3, 315-pound frame to dominate smaller offensive linemen, a pit bull taking on a bunch of French poodles. 

I got into journalism to see great athletes and tell great stories. The Pirates breaking their winning streak against an up-and-coming rival was not a happy story for them, but it was a compelling one: Braden River had a chance to tie the game after recovering an onside kick with 18 seconds to go but could not put together one last touchdown drive. The narrative became even more compelling when Braden River lost to Venice again in that year's postseason. I saw swells of emotions on the faces of seniors. Football meant everything to them, and it broke their heart that day. 

To write stories about things that mean something to people, that's reaching the mountaintop for a reporter. That's when you feel like you made a difference. I felt it after those Braden River and Venice football games, and I've felt it several times since. 

But after eight years of climbing that mountain, I'm making my descent. 

I have accepted a non-journalism job in Richmond, Virginia. The high school football games held Sept. 20 will be the last games I cover. My new job will not be as public-facing, but it will involve a lot of the same tenets that the Observer holds high. Namely, a dedication to its hyperlocal communities, telling the stories of each one in the truest way possible. 

I have learned how to do that only because of the kindness I have received from the East County sports community along the way. There are too many individual athletes and coaches to name, but I thank all of you for taking time out of your days to talk to me for stories. Athletic directors, thank you for connecting me with your programs and for letting me romp up and down the sidelines at your sporting events to get in the best position for action photos. (And for answering my annoying questions whenever I called.) 

To East County parents, thanks for letting me know what you thought of my stories, even when you disagreed with something I said in a column. What are sports without debate? As long as you actually read the story — not everyone did — I thank you for expressing your feelings in a (usually) respectful way. 

Outside of the high school ranks, thank you to all of the communication and PR professionals at area organizations for alerting me whenever you had a good story idea come across your desk. I was a one-person sports department at the Observer, so that type of assistance was always appreciated. 

Lastly, thank you for reading, no matter who you are. To serve the sports community, I tried to write as many types of stories about as many niche sports subjects as I could. Sometimes that ethos resulted in things like the story of two young soccer players' fight against cancer. Other times it led me to follow a high school mascot around for an entire football game. 

I even got to cover professional sports. I saw legends of golf compete at the inaugural World Champions Cup at The Concession Golf Club and I saw some of Earth's best athletes compete at the World Rowing Championships at Nathan Benderson Park. I talked with former Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Chad Johnson, aka Ochocinco, at Premier Sports Campus. I covered the Dick Vitale Gala every year, and it never stopped being inspiring. 

This is a vibrant sports community, one that is growing, and I'll cherish my time spent in it. I have no doubt that great stories will continue to be written on athletic fields here long after I'm gone, and I can't wait to take them in — only this time, as a spectator from afar.